Two staff members from the North-West University’s (NWU’s) subject group Psychology recently rubbed shoulders with scholars in the innovation space in London.
Dr Petro Erasmus and Irene Tsele were selected to be part of the South African cohort of 14 people to participate in the Royal Academy of Engineering’s Leadership in Innovation Fellowships (LIF) programme.
This programme aims to build the entrepreneurial capacity and commercialisation skills of innovators from selected partner countries and creates international networks of innovators and technology entrepreneurs.
“This two-week residential training programme gave us access to expert mentors and presented various opportunities for international networking,” explains Dr Erasmus. “This will enable us as innovators to develop a commercialisation plan for our innovations.”
Dr Petro Erasmus also shone during the programme by scoring second place in a pitching competition where participants pitched their innovations and business ideas to a panel of experts and successful entrepreneurs.
Dr Erasmus and Irene will also have continued support and access to personal mentors from the residential training. The support offered includes anything from regulatory advice and developing plans for market approval, to finding investors, suppliers, distributors or major customers in South Africa, Africa, the UK, or anywhere else in the world. There will also be a follow-up in-country visit in September.
More about the programme
The Royal Academy of Engineering is a delivery partner for the United Kingdom’s (UK’s) Newton Fund. This fund is part of the UK's official development assistance and its aim is to develop science and innovation partnerships that promote the economic development and welfare of developing countries.
Participants are jointly selected by the Academy and the in-country partners on the basis of their potential as entrepreneurs, the excellence of their research, as well as the potential and social and economic benefits of their innovation.
The road to London
The Technology Innovation Agency (TIA) – the academy’s in-country partner in South Africa – invited entrepreneurs and innovators from across South Africa to submit applications to participate in the LIF programme.
“The NWU Technology Transfer and Innovation Support Office assisted me from the beginning to apply for seed-funding to develop the Maths Whartels Board Game and the Maths app. This Maths Whartels innovation was submitted to TIA for consideration for the LIF programme,” explains Dr Erasmus.
More about Maths Whartels
Dr Erasmus’ innovation - Maths Whartels - is a new creative and innovative concept for a board game. The Maths app is designed for primary school learners. It is aimed at improving maths achievement by focusing on cognitive aspects and neuro-psychological facets by including principles used in play therapy to optimise learning and understanding in maths.
“So many researchers have excellent ideas and solutions for the social and economic problems our communities face. A programme such as the LIF programme and an agency such as TIA can assist innovators and researchers to commercialise their innovations and inventions,” says Dr Erasmus.
These are the participants in the Royal Academy of Engineering’s Leadership in Innovation Fellowships (LIF) programme.
